Edward Corvan, or as he was famously known, Ned, was born in Liverpool and moved to Newcastle at the age of four. Following the death of his father at an early age, Corvan was raised by his widowed mother who struggled to feed the family of four on her meagre earnings. After a brief career as a sail-maker Corvan joined Billy Purvis's Victoria Theatre. Here he tried his hand at a number of things, but found most success in the performance of local and comic songs. Ned then went on to join the Olympic where he enjoyed great success with songs such as 'Astrilly'. With this popularity he travelled the North singing his Tyneside songs, eventually settling in South Shields where he operated Corvan's Music Hall. After a number of years he gave up the establishment and returned to local singing. Corvan died on the 31st August 1865 at the tragically young age of 35.
The FARNE archives contain over 50 items composed by Edward Corvan and printed in the 1850s at the height of the artist's popularity. Included in this collection are a number of rare manuscript versions of Corvan's songs written in his own hand. To see more go to
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